Cost and Weather in Costa Rica

Hello! My name is Allison and my fiance, Chris, and I are getting married next July (2010).

We really wanted to get married in Costa Rica but I have a few questions for all of you.

First, I have no idea what to expect for the cost of a destination wedding. We will probably have around 100 guests. Are any of you willing to tell me the price range of your wedding and how many guests you had?

Also, I am very nervous about the weather in July....it is supposed to be their rainiest month and that might be a deal breaker for us. Have any of you been there in the summer? How bad is it really? Would we still be happy having our wedding there?

I was working with a travel agent who is also a Costa Rica DW specialist. My choice of dates were in either May or August of 2010. I was generally told that August is pretty rainy and it rains all day. Even this year in July I was told by my TA (who is in Costa Rica) that the rains have been quite frequent and long lasting. Having said that, she also told me that different parts of Costa Rica are different so I would get the scoop on the specific part of Costa Rica you are visiting.

As for the cost of a DW, it is a bit all over the map. There are a couple of threads in other parts of the forum where a lot of people have shared their budgets; do a search and you will find exactly what you are looking for. I have seen ranges as low as $4000 and as high as $45,000+. It depends on what you are planning on incorporating into your wedding.

Weather has been crazy all over our globe. I wanted to tell you that I just spent 2 1/2 weeks in July and got rain one afternoon. It is also CR's official mid year vacation for schools since it is considered our "Indian Summer". Chances are you will get a clear day. Actually between May & June there is more of a chance of rain. Guanacaste area in general is the last part of the country hit by the heavy part of the rainy season. Worst months in Guana are Sept & Oct.

I am planning my wedding in Manuel Antonio on May 7th 2010. We are currently here in Costa Rica and it has been a raining a little every day for the past few days, the forecast calls for rain into the 10 day, so I would expect rain. We are planning to get married on the beach so we will be renting a tent (from who, I have no idea yet). As Far as cost for us, well we are doing it all ourselves, so we have kept cost way down. About $2500 total, including the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. We are only having 30 people and we have rented out a sweet little restaurant that has a fantastic chef. We also found a local band to play. So it can be done for cheap, but it all bepends on how much time you have.

I am planning my wedding in Manuel Antonio on May 7th 2010. We are currently here in Costa Rica and it has been a raining a little every day for the past few days, the forecast calls for rain into the 10 day, so I would expect rain. We are planning to get married on the beach so we will be renting a tent (from who, I have no idea yet). As Far as cost for us, well we are doing it all ourselves, so we have kept cost way down. About $2500 total, including the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. We are only having 30 people and we have rented out a sweet little restaurant that has a fantastic chef. We also found a local band to play. So it can be done for cheap, but it all bepends on how much time you have.

Would you mind sharing which resort you chose? We are also trying to keep cost down, and $2,500 sounds like a great price.

Also, if you wouldn't mind sharing, how much were travel and accommodations for your guests?